Women's S&D Season Preview
10/15/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - During its first 12 seasons under the stewardship of head coach Ron Farina, the Seton Hall swimming & diving program has established a standard of excellence both in and out of the pool.
With Farina at the helm, the Pirates have set new school records in 36 different events, seven of which were re-written last year. SHU has also captured four individual BIG EAST championships during his tenure. Former swimmer Kevin Webster ('11) took home three of those titles, capping his career by earning BIG EAST Most Outstanding Swimmer honors in 2011.
In the classroom, the Pirate program is among the nation's elite as both the men's and women's squads earned their 12th consecutive CSCAA Team Scholar All-America Awards in 2011-12, with the men's team posting the 12th highest overall GPA among all qualifying schools. Between the two teams, the program also produced 32 BIG EAST Academic All-Stars a year ago, pushing the total to 264 under Farina's guidance.
"I think we have been able to find a nice balance here," said Farina. "Being in the upper-tier of the conference and right there with some of the best programs in America is something we are very proud of. We have proven that we can compete at a high level and perform in the classroom at the same time."
When it comes to competition, a seasoned core of accomplished veterans coupled with the arrival of one of the largest and deepest recruiting classes in program history, has the Pirates poised to continue the tradition of success in 2012-13. Coming off a year in which SHU sent 17 members of the women's team to the conference championship meet, Farina believes his team has the potential to take a large step forward in the upcoming season.
"Last year we graduated a strong group of contributors," continued Farina. "That group had a lot of success here and contributed to a couple school records but we have been able to offset those losses by bringing in the largest recruiting class in program history."
The incoming class features 10 student-athletes who come to South Orange with experience in a number of different disciplines.
Canadian imports Rae Congdon (Ottawa, Ontario) and Leah Mayer (London, Ontario) are expected to solidify the team's freestyle efforts as will Isabelle Alario (Hermosa Beach, Calif.). A high school All-American as a senior, Cora Meehan (Noblesville, Ind.) will team with senior Andrea Shuba (Pittsburgh, Pa.) to give the Pirates a formidable 1-2 punch in backstroke events.
Megan Mallon (Glen Mills, Pa.) will make an impact in breaststroke while Katie Adams (Linwood, N.J.), Alexa Santis (Ijamsville, Md.) (Back/Free), Gabi Levine (Garwood, N.J.), Kelly Miller (State College, Pa.) (Butterfly/Back) and will each provide depth in a number of different strokes.
Long Island native Gabby Signorelli (Massapequa, N.Y.) joins the squad after setting several diving records at Massapequa High School.
"The girls that we have brought in have instantly made us better," lauded Farina. "Not only have BIG EAST cuts but they have the ability to score for us as well. With them, they are already far along enough in their development that now it is more about fine-tuning and keeping them focused."
Aside from the addition of a promising class, the women's squad boasts a multitude of returning competitors whose names are littered throughout the school record books. One notable returnee is Andrea Shuba, one of the most heralded swimmers in program history. Shuba holds both individual backstroke records (100 and 200-yard) and was a part of two of the fastest relay teams SHU has ever produced.
Shuba is joined by fellow seniors Marielle O'Connor (Allentown, Pa.), Brenna Senior Marielle O'Connor
O'Keefe (New Hyde, N.Y.) and Alie Zelenky (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) as the team's most veteran members. All four seniors have placed their name on the school record board at least once, and head into their final seasons looking to improve on those marks.
"We have a great group of seniors this year," said Farina. "All four have them have been important contributors who have improved tremendously throughout their time here. Andrea has been fantastic over her first three seasons. Marielle has worked really hard and had some nice drops in her times and Alie has put herself in a position to do the same. Both of them, as well as Brenna have already been a part of record-setting relay teams and I think they could break those times this year. Brenna also just missed out in scoring in the mile at BIG EAST last year so I think our seniors can accomplish big things for us this year."
| Junior Jane Ehret |
"Kerrie and Jane are poised to take the next step this year," said Farina. "We might put Kerrie in the IM a little more this year because she is so talented in each stroke, so maybe we'll find something there. Jane is someone who has been a consistent performer for us and I don't expect that to change."
Kate Dwyer (Freehold, N.J.) and Kelly Markwell (Old Bridge, N.J.) form the other half of a potent quartet of third-year swimmers for The Hall. Both Dwyer and Markwell built upon solid freshman campaigns by breaking multiple personal records as sophomores. Heading into year three in blue and white, Farina feels that the two are on the cusp of emerging as forces within the conference.
"I have been very pleased with how Kate and Kelly have come along in their first two years," Farina stated. "I know Kate's going to give me everything she has every time I pencil her in. Kelly was on three record-setting relay teams for us at the conference last year and just missed out on making the top-16 in the 100-fly. We are a very dangerous team when they are on their games."
| Junior Katie Riley |
Rounding out the junior class is Katie Riley (Newburgh, N.Y.), a standout from the diving board for the Pirates over the last two seasons. Riley made her second straight trip to the BIG EAST Championships, last season, competing in the one-meter, three-meter and platform events. From the one-meter distance, Riley placed 18th in the preliminary
"Katie's a big part of what we do as a team," said Farina. "In dual meets, she scores some vital points from us. I think she is definitely going to be a factor at this year's BIG EAST Championship after just falling outside the cut for the final last year. I think Katie and Gabby [Signorelli] complement each other very nicely and together they are a very capable duo."
Riley, Shuba, O'Connor and O'Keefe will serve as team captains for 2012-13.
Sarah Dougherty (Waterford, N.Y.) and Megan Mostoller (Cheshire, Conn.) comprise the Pirates' sophomore contingent. A pair of BIG EAST Championship qualifiers from a year ago, both Dougherty and Mostoller played integral roles for SHU in dual meets as freshmen, swimming to a number of top-five individual finishes.
"I expect Sarah and Megan to continue improving," Farina said. "They are a year more seasoned and with that experience under their belts, I think they will elevate their performance this year."
"I think we have a nice mix of talented upperclassmen and some freshmen who already to contribute immediately," continued Farina. "I think we are going to surprise some people with how deep our team is. We don't just have depth, we have quality depth at every position. I think we could have at least eight individual scorers at the BIG EAST Championship from this group."
A challenging schedule stands between the Pirates and the 2013 BIG EAST Championships, featuring showdowns with some familiar foes as well as conference rivals. The team will also swim in two in-season invitational-style events.
Last season, the SHU women registered a 6-5 record in dual meet competition.
The 2012-13 slate kicks off on Tuesday, Oct. 16 when SHU hosts a head-to-head matchup with Montclair State. Other home dates include Providence (Sat, Nov. 3) and Marist on Saturday, Jan. 26, a meet that will serve as Senior Day for the Pirates.
SHU will travel to take on Rider (Oct. 18), Iona (Oct. 30), Saint Peter's (Nov. 9) in one-on-one matchups prior to their winter training trip to Puerto Rico. BIG EAST adversaries Villanova (Jan. 15) and Connecticut (Jan. 19) await the Pirates in head-to-head competition after the break.
The schedule also includes a trip to Baltimore, Md. to swim against Drexel, Lafayette and hosts Loyola (MD) in a quad meet (Oct. 27). The Pirates will also take part in the Patriot Invitational (Nov. 15-17) and the Bucknell Invitational (Feb. 2) before closing the regular season with a tri-meet against Georgetown and Rutgers on Saturday, Feb. 9 in Piscataway.
"We changed up our schedule a little bit this year," said Farina. "It's always a good meet when we swim against Rider and it serves as a barometer for us early in the season. We host Providence in our BIG EAST opener, a meet that we are very much looking forward to. The Patriot is a great event for us because it gives us a chance to rest the kids and give them a chance to hit some cuts in some different events. We'll head to Puerto Rico in the winter and continue our training. In the second half of the year, we'll really need to be on our game to beat teams like UConn, Villanova and Marist. UConn is a meet that gives the kids a good feel for what to expect at the conference championships, but we go up against a number of BIG EAST teams during that stretch which should be a good test for us."
Helping Farina guide the Pirates through the demanding schedule will be a pair of second-year assistants in Kara Lennon ('98) and diving coach PJ Hughes ('10).
Lennon and Hughes both previously competed for the Pirates and each joined the coaching staff prior to the 2011-12 season.
"I think Kara and PJ both took a lot away from their first year," said Farina. "They both competed here but it is different being on the other side. Now, they know what the competition is like and they know what they are up against. On the recruiting trail, they both worked extremely hard and their time and effort really paid off. They have learned a lot since coming on. As a staff, we continue to grow and I think that is a big part of moving forward as a program."
Another former Pirate, Andrew Le Blanc ('06), also returns to the program for his second season as volunteer assistant coach.
Following the regular season, SHU will head to the Midwest for the conference championships. The 2013 BIG EAST Championships will be held at the IUPUI Natatorium in Indianapolis, Ind. on Feb. 27-Mar. 2. The Pirates will be looking to improve on last season's 10th place team finish.
"This year the BIG EAST meet is a week or so later than it usually is, giving us some extra time to prepare and focus," Farina stated. "IUPUI is a very prestigious pool; it's sort of like playing in the coliseum in Los Angeles. It's also a very fast pool and serves as a great venue for a championship meet."
"This year we are looking for that second swim at BIG EAST," continued Farina. "Qualifying is nice, but if we're in a relay we want to set a record and in individual races, we're looking to score. I know this team has the ability to get those things done for us."
The season-opening meet against Montclair State will be held tomorrow, Tuesday, Oct. 16 inside the Arthur E. Imperatore Natatorium. Start-time is scheduled for 5 p.m.
